100 One Shot Challenge
by Blazingstar of ThunderClan
Summary: A series of 100 one-shots, each one based off a theme. Written for the challenge by Shannon Silver.
1. The Cat With Strange Eyes

**A/N: Okay, this is going to be a series of 100 one-shots, for the 100 One-Shot Challenge by Shannon Silver. :) Here's the first one!**

#1

Words: 2,175

Genre: Romance/Humor

Theme: The Cat With Strange Eyes

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Moonlight filtered in through the trees, casting a faint glow on a dark tabby she-cat's pelt as she padded quietly through the forest. Her steps were light and graceful, her green eyes alert despite the late hour as she came to a sudden break in the trees where the ground fell away at a ledge, overlooking the black water of a lake that reflected the silver of the full moon.

Sitting down at the ledge, the she-cat breathed deeply, the pleasant scent of pine wreathed all around her. It was a peaceful night; the only sounds that fell upon the she-cat's ears were of her own breathing, and the constant rustle and twittering of nocturnal forest animals.

She sat by herself for maybe a minute before the patter of pawsteps behind her had her raising her ears. Even though they were so quiet, she recognized the sound of the steps immediately, as well as the scent that came along with them. A low purr broke out in her throat.

A large white-silver tom emerged from the shadows of the forest behind the she-cat; he knew that she'd noticed his presence, even though she didn't show it. Wordlessly, he came up from behind and pressed against her affectionately, a purr rumbling through him as she leaned into him and nuzzled his neck.

"Hello, Darkshine," he meowed quietly as he sat down beside her.

"Hi," Darkshine mewed. A deep calm settled over her just from having him close; leaning into him, she sighed in content. "You can't sleep, either?"

Twining his tail with hers, he replied softly, "I'm fine, actually. But I heard you get up, and I wanted to see if you were okay."

Darkshine felt her heart swell. Tilting her head up slightly to look into his eyes, she murmured, "I'm fine, now that you're here."

He met her gaze, his mismatched eyes soft - the right one was bright green, the left a sharp ice-blue. To any other cat, the gaze would've been startling, but Darkshine saw only the love that was staring back at her as he leaned in and licked her on the cheek.

She still remembered back when she was just an apprentice - when he had just barely begun to enter her life. By the time she'd started her training, he had been training for three moons already.

The day she'd moved into the apprentice den along with her sisters was the day that she'd first seen him - well, she was sure she'd seen him before, but that was the first day she _really_ saw him: saw his eyes.

...

_Padding into the apprentice den with Leafpaw and Moonpaw behind her, Darkpaw bumped into a wall of gray fur._

_"Excuse me," she mumbled, glancing up. At first, she carelessly looked away; then, she did a double take, her gaze locking with the tom's as her eyes snapped back to his face. She had never seen a pair of eyes on any cat that were so vivid, or different colors - they were so... strange._

_The tom's face was noticeably handsome; after a moment, he grinned at her in a friendly way, meowing, "Hi."_

_Only then did she realize that she'd been staring, and that she had stopped in her tracks, blocking his way. Her pelt flushed with embarrassment. Without replying, she pushed past him. _

_..._

From that moment, he didn't have a name to her; he had simply been the cat with strange eyes.

- But then, of course, there was the incident with the dog.

...

_Darkpaw could barely contain her purr as she padded along behind Hawktail, her mentor, with two other cats tailing her. The sun was shining, the air filled with the usual scent of pine as she was led to the clearing where the battle training would be held. This was only her third time outside the ShadowClan camp._

_"We're here," Hawktail announced as they reached the clearing. Turning to his apprentice, the tom meowed, "I'm going to go stand at the end of the clearing - when you're ready, I want you to charge and try to hit me. We'll start from there. As you attack, Mouseclaw will stand behind you to see where you need improvement, while Stormpaw and I will do the same from the front."_

_Darkpaw nodded. A few moments later, her mentor and the other apprentice had reached the end of the clearing. Eyes narrowed, the dark tabby she-cat tensed her muscles; then, she bounded forward, running at full speed. As she reached Hawktail, he easily dodged her one-pawed swipe._

_Then, suddenly, she was falling. Her heart lurched as she realized that she had run right off the edge of a steep slope that'd stood behind her mentor. She could feel rocks and twigs digging into her pelt, a few cutting her as she tumbled; a few seconds later, she landed back on level ground. As she tried to get back onto her paws, stings and aches broke out all over her body. Stumbling, she cursed._

_Then, Darkpaw froze as she suddenly became very aware of a low growling that sounded far too close for comfort. Slowly, she looked up. A large black-and-white dog stood less than a tree-length away, its lips curled back over its teeth. It black eyes were staring straight at her._

_Darkpaw stood frozen in absolute terror as the dog barked and began to charge towards her, growling. All thoughts were wiped from her mind; she knew that there was no way out._

_There was a flash of silver fur, and a familiar-looking cat suddenly stood before her. The dog was only tail-lengths away now, and approaching fast. Without hesitation, the cat raised its paw, claws glinting in the sunlight, and slashed the dog across its nose. Skidding to an abrupt stop, the dog whimpered before turning tail and running away._

_Breathing hard, the white-silver cat turned to her. "Are you okay?" he asked._

_Darkpaw immediately noticed his eyes - bright; one green, one blue. Relief, and gratitude for the tom's bravery flooded through her. In answer to his question, she nodded. Trying to stand up again, she couldn't help but stumble slightly; he caught her, letting her lean on his shoulder. "Thank you," she mewed._

...

On that day, he had earned his name: Stormpaw.

Little did Darkpaw know that that was only the first of many moments they would spend together.

...

Her first Gathering:

_"StarClan, it's freezing out here," Darkpaw muttered, pressing closer to Moonpaw as the leaders began to speak. From her right, another cat suddenly brushed its fur against hers; she turned to see Stormpaw, his mismatched eyes sparkling as he looked at her. _

_"Sorry. I'm cold, too," he meowed, a low purr starting up in his throat. _

_Darkpaw felt her ears grow hot with embarrassment, but she didn't move away - his fur was so warm._

...

It didn't take long for the two of them to become friends. It started with that first Gathering; then, they began to talk more. It was mostly chatter at first. However, as they became more familiar with each other, their conversations became deeper and more personal, and Darkpaw found that she could talk to him about anything - their friendship felt natural, effortless.

She never thought anything of it as they began to grow closer; over the course of her first three moons as an apprentice, the two became inseparable. They broke out into playfighting as often as they shared private conversations; they shared prey regularly, laughing and chatting as they ate; and, at Gatherings, they sat close, sharing warmth.

Darkpaw wasn't an oblivious cat, but she became so familiar with the tom that she never once took note of the way his eyes always lit up at the sight of her (after all, hers did the same at the sight of him); the way he always let his fur brush against hers as they walked (she liked it - his pelt was soft and warm); the way he was always the first one to comfort and defend her (she did the same for him); the way he was always so affectionate with her - purring, nuzzling, licking, nudging, brushing (she loved this about him - he was strong, yet he was also a big lovable ball of fur).

...

Then, her fourth Gathering rolled around, the day before Stormpaw would be made a warrior.

_The Clans were now beginning to leave the moonlit clearing, heading back to their own homes. Darkpaw couldn't help but purr as Stormpaw fell into step beside her, as he always did; Webpaw was beside him, and the two toms were chatting. _

_Darkpaw padded along silently, content as the toms chatted. Suddenly, a young, pretty RiverClan warrior called out from her Clanmates, "Hi, Stormpaw!" _

_Stormpaw looked up and caught the she-cat's gaze; he grinned in a friendly way, as he often did, and called back, "Hi, Streamflower!" _

_When the she-cat had turned away, Webpaw nudged Stormpaw, grinning. "You're mooning over her, aren't you?" _

_Stormpaw seemed surprised. "No," he meowed. For a fraction of a second, his eyes flashed to meet Darkpaw's, then quickly darted away. "There's a different she-cat I'm interested in." _

...

_Darkpaw groaned, turning over in her nest. She couldn't sleep; her mind was buzzing with thoughts, mostly centered around a certain tom with silver fur and mismatched eyes._

_"Are you okay?" Moonpaw asked quietly. "You haven't stopped fidgeting."_

_Darkpaw nodded. "Sorry," she grumbled._

_"You're thinking about something, aren't you?" Leafpaw mewed knowingly._

_Darkpaw sighed heavily. "It's Stormheart," she mumbled, deciding to confide in her sisters. The tom had just been made a warrior today. "I can't stop thinking about him."_

_For a moment, both of her sisters were silent; then, Moonpaw broke into a purr, and Leafpaw sounded amused as she mewed, "Well, it's about time!"_

...

_A few nights later, Darkpaw found herself on a midnight stroll with a certain tom._

_Stormheart was a few pawsteps ahead of her, his strange eyes sparkling as he glanced back at her. "Come on! I'll race you to our spot."_

_Breaking out into a run, the two raced among the pines, heading toward the spot where they knew that the trees would break away and there would be a ledge overlooking the lake. They'd shared countless nights there before._

_Panting, Darkpaw slowed down as Stormheart reached the ledge before her. Her heart skipped a beat as he turned and met her gaze, his eyes shining. "I believe I win," he meowed teasingly._

_Darkpaw rolled her eyes dramatically. "I _let_ you win," she shot back playfully. _

_Stormheart purred at her as she settled down beside him. Darkpaw's stomach felt strangely fluttery._

_For a while, the two simply sat in companionable silence, looking out at the lake. The moon was bright overhead._

_Then, Darkpaw spoke slowly. "When you became a warrior... I thought - "_

_"That I wouldn't spend time with you anymore?" Stormheart finished for her. He paused for a moment; then, quietly, he murmured, "I would never forget about you, Darkpaw."_

...

When the she-cat was finally made a warrior a few moons later, Stormheart was the one cheering her new name the loudest.

After that, it hadn't taken long for the two to become mates.

...

Now, looking into his eyes, Darkshine could hardly believe that he had started out as nothing to her but 'the cat with strange eyes'. Over so little time, he'd become her savior... her best friend... the tom she loved.

Brushing her cheek against his, she mewed quietly, "I love you, Stormheart."

"I love you, too," he meowed back, running his tongue over her ears.

Silence; then -

"Your eyes are weird."

He purred.


	2. We Meet And Part

**A/N: Thank you, awesomeness102 and Shannon Silver, for your reviews on the last chapter, as well as the favorites/alerts - they seriously brightened my day. :) **

**Here's the next one! **_  
_

#2

Words: 1,104

Genre: Angst/Romance

Theme: We Meet And Part

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Frostleaf could feel her paws itching with excitement as she traveled along the familiar path that she followed every other night. It was nearly the full moon, and the bright moonlight illuminated her way as she traveled through the forest, being extra cautious to not make any noise. She had never been the most quiet cat - if she were walking the way she normally did, she'd have alerted half the Clan when she secretly left the camp.

After walking for a while, she finally came to a stop - the path had led to a stream that she shouldn't have been so familiar with. She glanced around, checking - as was now routine for her - that she hadn't been followed; seeing that she was indeed alone, she settled down to wait. This was the stream that marked ThunderClan's border with RiverClan.

After a while that seemed to take forever, Frostleaf finally heard what she'd been waiting for: light pawsteps, just on the other side of the stream. She stood just in time to see a handsome light brown tom leap agilely over the border, stepping into ThunderClan territory.

Frostleaf felt a purr break out in her throat; excitedly, the white she-cat darted forward to meet the tom, brushing her cheek against his as she reached him. "Hi, Hailfoot," she purred into his neck.

"Hi," he purred back. The white she-cat didn't seem to notice that his purr was slightly forced.

Her blue eyes eager and adoring, Frostleaf leaned in to lick his cheek; however, the tom took a step back, not allowing her to. The look in Frostleaf's eyes made his pelt prick with guilt; she recoiled, her gaze darkening with sadness and rejection as if he'd snapped at her.

"What's wrong?" she asked quietly, her tone filling with concern.

Hailfoot looked down. This was going to be harder than he thought... but he had to be firm about it. "Frostleaf..." he began.

"I've done something wrong, haven't I?"

Sighing, Hailfoot shook his head. "No, Frostleaf, you haven't."

"Then why are you acting like this?"

For a moment, Hailfoot paused. This was the thing about Frostleaf - she was a very sweet she-cat, so willing to give love, and so worthy to receive it in turn... but she was so insecure. He couldn't keep playing with her heart like this; the longer they continued, the worse both of them would be hurt when they finally ended it. They had to stop sneaking around.

Breathing deeply and choosing his words carefully, he looked away from her. "I can't do this anymore," he said flatly.

"What do you mean?" She already sounded so hurt that Hailfoot felt his heart prick with pain.

Finally looking up, he locked his gaze with hers, careful to keep his expression guarded, hard. "You know what I mean," he said harshly.

Frostleaf took an involuntary step back; finally, the hardness of his tone had gotten to her - she hated being spoken to so rudely. "No, I don't," she retorted.

Hailfoot felt a sudden, unexpected heat rise within him at the stubborness in her eyes; StarClan, he loved her, he loved her so much, but she had to listen to him. "Look," he practically snarled. The white she-cat flinched, but held her ground. "_I can't do this_ - and I don't see how you think you can! You're a medicine cat, Frostleaf!"

Frostleaf parted her jaws, probably to argue, but he cut her off. "This has been going on for too long," he said, beginning to pace. "Just us meeting here every other night goes against both the warrior code and the medicine cat code - we're betraying our Clanmates! We can't keep going on and pretending this will work out, because it won't. And do you know what would happen if he had kits?" Frostleaf seemed surprised as he continued, unable to stop; "They would be _outcasts_ in whichever Clan we decided to dump them in - not only half-Clan, but the kits of a medicine cat! From the very day they were born, they'd be seen as a product of the worst disloyalty.

"Do you have any idea what it was like for me, growing up as half-RiverClan, half-ShadowClan?" Hailfoot continued, not caring that all these words were falling from his mouth, unrestrained. Frostleaf didn't even bother to try interrupting him now. "_Every day_, I dealt with stupid cats that accused me of disloyalty, even when I did everything to show that my heart belonged to RiverClan - yet here I am, proving them all right!" He stopped, breathing heavily, aware that his eyes had begun to water; when had he taken his last breath?

Shaking his head lightly as if to calm himself down, Hailfoot stopped, and stared into her blue eyes that were now slightly startled. "This is over," he told her. "I'm done with you."

For a moment, hurt flashed in Frostleaf's eyes; however, she quickly masked it, her expression turning hard. "Fine," she muttered. "Goodbye, Hailfoot. I'm sorry you're not the cat I thought you were." Without another word, she pushed past him, heading back to her own camp.

_But I _am_ the cat you think I am!_ he wanted to cry at her. _I love you; I'm doing this for both of us._ Feeling numb, Hailfoot tried to convince himself that he'd done the right thing as he crossed the border and began to pad back home as well. He loved Frostleaf; he loved her so much that it hurt... but it was wrong for them to be mates.

He had done the right thing by ending it.

...At least, that was what he tried to tell himself; but as he padded on, further away from her, he couldn't hold back the agonizing sense of loss that weighed so heavily on his heart.


End file.
